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“She fears compromise?”

“A widow, no family, and with an estate valued at £50,000? Of course she fears compromise.”

“Which brings us to Wednesday. Should either of our sons be present?”

“I do not know. If the companion is worth her wage then she will have known our family situation and mentioned it before I was introduced. And even if she was slow off the mark, it would be the first place to be checked as soon as I drove off. What do you think? Is it too unsubtle? The knocker has only been on the door for two weeks.”

“Dinner?”

“Too soon. Let me think. A word to Barstow might be the way to handle it. He will let you know when she arrives and then you can ‘by mere chance’ meet the young lady as she leaves 20 minutes later?”

“Barstow will handle the introduction?”

“Yes, but you do not have to make conversation. You were on your way to, who cares where. If she is as sharp as I think she is, she will realise it is not a co-incidence at all. Most husbands try to be out of the house to avoid exactly this situation.

“Then the following Monday at the end of our visits when it is just the two of us, I will invite her to dinner. I did not spot her in the congregation at St. George’s but will endeavour to do so this Sunday.”

“And the boys?”

Despite being 33 and 31, they would always be boys to their father.

“If she accepts the invitation to dinner then at least one of them. We will have to think carefully on the other guests.”

“What of the other mothers of eligible young men? I doubt you will be able to keep the prize of the season to yourself.”

“No, that is unrealistic. Once she gains a broader acceptance in society, then I have suspicion she will be a valued guest at most occasions. We have the advantage of being the ones who made the first move. But no more than that.”

“I have heard you talk about the widows of your acquaintance. They admit to enjoying the freedom of widowhood, especially if they have been left flush by their dead husband. Do you think Lady Napier came to London to find a husband? She might not be receptive to the idea.”

“Entirely possible. But this is not a woman who had to suffer through a marriage of decades. Again without being crude, the marriage bed could not have been very, very.

“I do not know how to end that sentence, and I am not sure that I need to. But you are right, she is young, rich and free from the control of a father or husband. You said the Baron was wide awake?”

“He was. It will be in Trust, Lawrence has a good reputation, they would have ensured she was protected as much as possible.”

“It has given me a task and I shall see what the coming weeks bring.”

“You have given up on young Georgiana?”

“No, but Darcy is back to hovering around her. I will take a step back and let the two of them decide matters. She is all set for Queen Charlotte’s Ball.”

“That reminds me. I had a letter from Catherine wanting to stay. She can remember her own presentation and she wanted to be there for Georgiana.”

“Please tell me you did not allow her to visit.”

“I am not completely mad. It would be nothing more than an attempt to upstage Georgiana on the day, as well as generally making a scene, at a time when we are trying to recover Darcy’s dignity. Not forgetting her favourite topic, when is Darcy going to fulfil this imaginary childhood engagement? My return letter was on its way less than an hour after I received hers. She is not welcome here, I did not think it appropriate for Catherine to attend, given that her own daughter had not been presented.”

“Do you ever worry she might open the de Bourgh townhouse?”

“Catherine spend money when she could leech off me? That will be the day! No, the one thing I am sure about is she will stay here or not visit at all.”

“I hope you are right. But well done on responding instantly. The last thing that Georgiana needs, that any of us need, is a ‘royal visit’ from Catherine.”

What the Countess did not mention to her husband was her concern over Georgiana Darcy. Her foolish mistake at Ramsgate was more than two and a half years earlier. Yet she had not yet recovered from it. The Countess had stepped back because there was no point in competing with her brother and guardian, even if she felt he was not helping.

Chapter 22

“Lady Napier, allow me to present my younger son, Colonel Richard Fitzwilliam, of the 1st King’s Royal Dragoon Guards. Richard, this is Lady Napier, widow of the 7th Baron.”